Like many popular elements from oriental tattoo design such as lotus flowers and dragons, koi fish tattoo designs have permeated into Western tattoo.
Koi fish Facts:
- The Koi is associated with the family. On Children's Day Koi flags are raised, Black Koi the father, Orange/Red mother, Blue/White for a boy, red/pink for a girl.
- The Koi Fish symbolizes courage in the Buddhist Religion. According to Buddhists, humans 'swim' through the 'ocean of suffering' without fear, just like a fish swims through water.
- Another word to describe "love" is "koi". The kanji character for "kokoro (heart)" is included as part of both kanji characters. Both "ai" and "koi" can be translated as "love" in English.